Ditch the manicured lawn and create an oasis for birds, bees and other pollinators in your backyard or on your balcony. Find out how in the months ahead at the Tropical Audubon Society’s Steinberg Nature Center, where they’re hosting a new demonstration garden. The project, which kicked off in February, is being led by volunteer coordinator Amy Creekmur and board member Kirsten Hines.

“We’ve designed the Demo Garden to show people that wildlife-friendly landscaping is beautiful, cost-effective and doesn’t have to be complicated to design and implement,” says Hines. “Native plants and a little diversity can convert any garden into an oasis for birds and other wildlife, which is critical to the overall ecological health of increasingly urbanized Miami-Dade County, particularly as we mitigate for the impacts of climate change.”

The garden will feature native plants aimed at recreating habitat. They’re easier to maintain, avoiding or reducing the need for irrigation and chemicals, including pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers. When it’s finished, the new garden will feature interpretive signs to direct visitors through the space, describe the plants, their value to the environment and specific bird and butterfly species, and their role in the home landscape.

Area residents can learn to garden for birds and other pollinators by joining their Planting-for-Birds Eco-Restoration Days on the third Saturday of every month from 9am until noon. The garden’s formal dedication ceremony is slated for Saturday, June 6, to coincide with Tropical Audubon’s annual Native Plant Sale. Located in the front yard of the historic Doc Thomas House on Sunset Drive, the Bird-Friendly Demonstration Garden project is supported by the National Audubon’s “Plants for Birds” Burke Grant and Miami-Dade County’s Environmental Education Community-based Organization Grant.

To volunteer, contact Amy Creekmur. For more information about planting days, click here.